Welcome to Grafted: Jewish Roots of Christianity! My guest is Rachel Amidei.
Confronting Antisemitism in the Church and Reading Scripture in Its Jewish Context
Stephanie and Rachel discuss recognizing and rejecting antisemitism within the church, stating they have no tolerance for antisemitic comments and arguing that someone cannot claim to be Christian while hating Jews, since Jesus is Jewish and will return as a Jewish king with his throne in Israel. They emphasize that the Bible is a Jewish book and that understanding its meaning requires learning the Jewish and biblical context rather than applying modern Western assumptions. They challenge the common approach of interpreting the Old Testament through the New Testament, arguing instead that the New Testament should be read using the foundations and definitions given earlier, noting it heavily repeats the Old Testament. Using “food” as an example, they say God’s definition of food excludes animals like pigs, regardless of modern usage.
Welcome to Grafted: Jewish Roots of Christianity! My guest today is Hope Egan from First Fruits of Zion.
Host Stephanie Pavlantos interviews Hope Egan—realtor, author of Holy Cow! What the Bible Says About Eating Meat, associate producer of the Messiah podcast, and outreach coordinator at First Fruits of Zion—about her testimony and work. Egan describes growing up Reform Jewish, developing disordered eating, and finding help through Overeaters Anonymous, which prompted prayer, repentance-oriented practices, and a deeper relationship with God. She recounts coming to faith in Jesus through a Unity church book, then a Protestant small group, exploring Catholicism, and revisiting Orthodox Judaism before choosing not to give up Jesus and later being baptized Catholic. Meeting a Jewish believer who followed Leviticus 11 and studying HaYesod shifted her perspective, though theology became overly central. Health issues led to a biblically clean diet and the eventual development of her book, which addresses animals, key New Testament passages, and context. She later refocused spiritually in 2018, reengaged Jewish-believer community, returned to FFOZ, and now leads a HaYesod group while emphasizing life-giving faith in Messiah.
Stephanie Pavlantos hosts Max Bonilla of Ultra Truth Ministry to discuss his coming to Messianic belief at age 14 through Bible study and concern over moral decline. They argue many church problems, including abuse and lax morality, stem from departing from God’s law and treating Jesus as having abrogated the Torah. Bonilla contends Paul is misunderstood and must be read in first-century context alongside Acts and the Gospels, addressing claims that Paul taught against Torah. They discuss caring for the poor, women in congregations, and how “neurodivergent” traits may correlate with deep Torah-focused study. Bonilla advises testing extra-biblical texts against Torah, critiques rabbinic traditions like the Zohar’s authority, explains wedding-feast/outer-darkness imagery as judgment by deeds, and outlines a Torah-based calendar using moon and agriculture rather than equinox calculations.
Host Stephanie Pavlantos welcomes guest Jen Dubey to discuss key takeaways from their January–April Romans class and common misunderstandings of Paul. They emphasize reading Romans with historical, Jewish, and Hebraic context, arguing Paul remained a Torah-observant Jew and did not renounce the Law of Moses, citing Acts and Romans passages and explaining Paul’s use of a “straw man” argument. They contrast “grace and Torah” rather than “grace versus Torah,” noting gospel and grace precede the New Testament and connect to reconciliation and covenant life. They define legalism as transactional, self-centered “compensatory observance,” distinct from relational covenantal obedience motivated by love and gratitude. They address confusion over “law,” added traditions, deconstruction trends, humility in the Torah movement, and salvation as ongoing trust/allegiance rather than a one-time prayer, encouraging viewers to study Romans deeply and consult their recorded teachings.
Welcome to Grafted: Jewish Roots of Christianity! My guest is Danielle Lockett.
Host Stephanie Pavlantos welcomes guest Danielle Lockett (Deep N Word on TikTok/YouTube), who describes how her ministry began in 2021 on Zoom with friends and family, then expanded to Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok after Holy Spirit prompting. Danielle shares how a failed real-estate mentorship in 2019 led to depression, a call to read the Bible chronologically, and deeper study including Hebrew word lookups, which birthed a Bible study ministry and hosting biblical feast days. Stephanie and Danielle discuss awakening to Torah observance, grief and anger over church traditions, the need for humility, kindness, and discernment, and navigating family tensions while honoring parents. They address debates within Torah communities (including denial of Yeshua’s divinity), emphasize obeying God over “Babylon” traditions, and highlight the Millennial Kingdom where Messiah will rule and set doctrine straight.
